Update: Michigan

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More movies as we try and figure out what this game is all about.

By Anoop Gantayat

We shared the Michigan intro with you yesterday and promised that we`d play more of the game and be back as soon as possible with gameplay movies and in-depth impressions. We`ve got the movies for you today, but the in-depth impressions will have to wait until we actually understand Michigan a bit more.

On the media page for this story, you`ll find a few gameplay movies showcasing Michigan as it`s being played. We`ve got a clip of our playing around with the camera, a clip of one of our reporters narrowly avoiding death by spider bite, a clip of a creepy hallway and even a brief battle.

Battles, you ask? Yes, this game has battles -- only you`re not in direct control of the action. When enemies, which come in the form of spidery things of varying sizes, appear on the scene, your reporter is the one who takes action with her pistol. Your job as the cameraman is to focus your attention on individual spiders so the reporter will know who to blast (apparently she`s plugged into the camera and can see what`s in your viewfinder).

Seeing as how you`re just a cameraman, such indirect interaction is at the center of Michigan. Just as you don`t actual fire a pistol, you don`t open doors. Instead, you look at the door and your reporter will open it. You`re the first one to go through the door, though. Items and clues for solving survival-horror-style puzzles -- they`re all in here, only you take a hands-off approach to everything.

You do get your hands on one thing in the game, though -- your camera. And, sure enough, Spike seems to have done a good job of simulating the operation of a camera and the movement of a cameraman. The game controls like a first person shooter, with the right analogue stick used for movement and the left used to look around. You can zoom in and out with the right shoulder buttons and have your character duck to two differnt levels by using the D-Pad. Moving around while fully zoomed in causes headache-inducing levels of shake -- just like in real life.

As important as interaction with your camera is, so too is interaction with your reporter. If you don`t guide your reporter properly in battle or when faced with danger, she may end up dieing. We`ve had two reporters die on us so far. This may seem like a bad thing, but the game actually gave us a new reporter and continued on, although we missed a few scenarios.

Clear a scenario and you`re rewarded for your camerawork. The game gives you points in various areas. You`re rewarded with `erotic points` for taking sexy shots of your reporter and capturing clips of dirty magazines. `Immoral points` are given for taking shots of dead bodies (bonus points if the dead body is that of your reporter).

Michigan is definitely a unique experience, but we`ll have to play a bit more to determine if we like it.